>> couric: tonight, from sunday morning to monday night, the president's t.v. blitz for health care reform. i'm katie couric. also tonight, breaking news an f.b.i. terror investigation. cbs news has learned that the man at the center of it, najibullah zazi, is now& admitting ties to terrorists. a tale of two ten-year-olds, fighting the flu and fighting for their lives. >> we're going to fight this together. >> couric: and steve hartman bellies up to the bar to toast the longest-serving bar tender in history. >> this is my last call! (cheers and applause) captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with katie couric.

>> couric: good evening, everyone. turn on your television sunday morning and he'll be there. change the channel, he'll still be there. president obama will be blanketing the airwaves to push for health care reform. he taped the interviews today, including one with bob schieffer for fay tae. chief white house correspondent chip reid as more on the president's sunday-morning marathon. >> reporter: he's here, he's there, he's just about everywhere, president obama selling health care reform in what seems like a never ending parade. speeches, rallies, town halls and interviews. >> and if it can change a city, it can change a state. >> reporter: today he took the talk to a new level, sitting down with bob schieffer of cbs news for an interview that will air sunday on "face the nation," one of an unprecedented five interviews with cbs, nbc, abc, cnn, even spanish language univision all intended to

saturate the airwaves during the sunday-morning talk shows. in just eight months as president, he's given an astonishing 277 speeches or statements. 124 of those partly and 33 entirely devoted to health care reforms. the president's critics say or at least hope the strategy is a mistake, that talk eventually becomes cheap despite all the words they note, not a single republican supports his plan, and even democrats are badly split. even some objective political analysts say so much obama may be too much obama. >> when the president becomes video wallpaper, when he's always on on all the channels, people naturally tend to tune out. >> reporter: but the white house says it's full speed ahead. the is by far their best salesman, they say, and they learned a lesson in august. when the president goes silent, angry critics fill the void. but perhaps recognizing that his words can't carry the entire

burden, others, including the first lady, are weighing in on health care. >> this current situation is unacceptable. >> reporter: even secretary of state hillary clinton whose health plan crashed and burns 15 years ago today called for an end to the hysteria. >> so we just have to calm down here, take two aspirin, go to bed, think about hit in the morning. i'm very optimistic. >> reporter: monday night, the president will be on the david letterman show on cbs. yes, it's a comedy show, but rest assured he will find some way to bring up his favorite topic: health care reform. katie? >> couric: chip reid, chip, thanks very much. and as chip just mentioned, one of the people the president spoke with today is our own bob schieffer who joins us flow washington. and bob, what did the president have to say? >> well, katie, in the interview that that we did he said flatly today that despite the skepticism about his plan he would not support any kind of reform that raises taxes on the middle-class. that is families that make less than

$250,000 a year. he said that flatly. as for the angry tone of the debate, he said he believes it grows out of a worry that government is just getting too large. >> i think that what's driving passions right now is that health care has become a proxy for a broader set of issues about how much government should be involved in our economy. even though we're having a passionate disagreement here, we can be civil to each other. and we can try to express ourselves, acknowledging that we're all patriots, we're all americans, and not assume the absolute worst in people's motives. and i have to... one last point i've got to make, bob, and this is i do think part of what's different today that the 24-hour news cycle and cable television and blogs and all this, they focus on the most extreme elements on both sides, they can't get enough of conflict.

it's catnip to the media right now. and so the easiest way to get 15 minutes of fame is to be rude to somebody. >> schieffer: he went, katie, to say that every president has tried to bring change has faced ferocious opposition, but he gave no indication today that he's pulling back on health care reform in any way or that he thinks he's pushing for too much too fast. >> couric: and, bob, the president is so ubiquitous these days, do you think that he runs the risk of people just tuning him out? >> you know, katie, i really, to be honest, don't know the answer to that question. but i'll tell you. this i mean, his people say you've got to keep hammering at the same message, say it over and over because there's so many voices in all this. but i'll tell you the other part however much he's been on, he has not yet made the case. the country is still very skeptical and they're still divided about this. >> couric: all right. bob schieffer. bob, thank you. and we'll be watching your full interview with the president this sunday, of course, on "face the nation."

the other overriding domestic issue of the obama presidency so far has been shoring up the economy and the nation's banks. outrage over executive salaries and wall street bonuses has been reverberating all across the country ever since the recession began. now, cbs news has learned that the fed is planning some unprecedented steps to address the problem, and our business correspondent anthony mason is here with that story. anthony? >> reporter: katie, the fed is just several weeks away from proposing sweeping new regulations on compensation for key bank employees across the country. the plan would affect not just executives but also top traders and loan officers. the new rules would not set caps on salaries but would force banks to abandon bonus plans that encourage the kind of excessive risk taking that led to the global financial crisis. already this year, the country's five biggest banks have set aside $60 billion to cover compensation, just $17 billion

less than 2007. and that's after tens of thousands of layoffs in the financial sector. the french government recently imposed pay restrictions on its banking industry and european leaders meeting before next week g-20 summit in pittsburgh said excessive compensation must be at the top of the agenda. >> we need to deliver on this. it's time to say enough is enough. >> reporter: in the proposal the fed's now discussing, the country's top a banks would have to present their compensation plans to fed supervisors for approval. compensation at the thousands of smaller banks would be reviewed as part of the regular examination cycle. katie? >> couric: ultimately, anthony, how would the fed actually force banks to discourage excessive risk taking? how would that work? >> well, one way they could do it would be to force the banks what what are called clawback provisions. that allows the bank to take back bonus pay years later in some cases from an employee who ultimately engages in risk-taking that proves to be a bad investment. >> couric: interesting.

all right, anthony mason, thank you. there is another big development tonight in the terror investigation that led the f.b.i. to search homes in new york city and denver. cbs news has learned the central figure, the najibullah zazi, has admitted to having ties to terrorist activity. here's chief investigative correspondent armen keteyian. >> reporter: u.s. intelligence sources tell cbs news that after three days of intense questioning, f.b.i. agents in denver cemented zazi's connection to terrorism. but at this time, there is no information about an imminent plot against the united states. cbs news has learned several key details in the case against the 24-year-old afghan national. sources say the formula for the powerful explosive t.a.t.p., also known as organic peroxide, was found in a computer in zazi's possession, confiscated by the government. zazi's frequent communication with a known al qaeda contact in pakistan who told him what to say if arrested by authorities. in one such conversation, there was a reference to a wedding, a

code word al qaeda has used in the past to refer to an impending attack. >> they're right now the process of finding out what they've discovered in the searches, interviewing additional people as well as trying to get as much information from this gentleman as possible. >> reporter: questions about zazi, a shuttle bus driver at denver international airport, first surfaced on monday shortly after law enforcement agents raided at least three new york apartments belonging to suspected associates. additional searches were done in two denver-area homes. agents swabbing sinks and countertops for possible bomb-making residue now being analyzed at f.b.i. labs. on wednesday, zazi's attorney insisted his client was innocent claiming he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. >> my client is not involved in any terror plot. >> reporter: prosecutors are said to be exploring the charges that could be brought against zazi, including material support to terrorism, a conviction that could mean up to 15 years in

prison, katie. >> couric: i know you'll be following that story, armen, thank you very much. turning overseas now, protestors angry over iran's presidential election refused to be silenced. today, tens of thousands defied the government by marching through tehran. their rally came as iran's leader held a larger parade to condemn israel and support the palestinians. at the keynote address, president ahmadinejad, who travels to new york next week, called the holocaust a lie. coming up next here on the "cbs evening news," the h1n1 threat, a tale of two children. why one is recovering and one is not. dad, here-look at this- your p.a.d. isn't just poor circulation in your legs causing you pain. ok-what is it? dad, it more than doubles your risk of a heart attack or stroke. i can't keep anything from you. you better read about plavix. if you have p.a.d., plavix can help protect you

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anywhere in the country for a low flat rate. cool. you know this scale is off by a good 7, 8 pounds. maybe five. priority mail flat rate boxes only from the postal service. a simpler way to ship. >> couric: an update tonight on the murder of yale university grad student annie le and the man accused of killing her. raymond clark, who's being held on $3 million bail. the hartford "courant" newspaper is reporting that police found clark's d.n.a. and le niece the place where her body was discovered on sunday. according to the report, one investigator saw clark trying to hide cleaning equipment that was spattered with blood. in health news, the first h1n1 flu shots will arrive the middle of next month and the c.d.c. said today a nasal vaccine will be available even sooner. but the nasal spray is not for many people most at risk, including babies and toddlers,

pregnant women, and people with asthma. 11 states are now reporting widespread h1n1 outbreaks. in oklahoma, mark strassmann has the story of two young victims. they're facing very different outcomes, and doctors don't understand why. >> they said "take them to the e.r. immediately." they said "we're going to have to admit him." they said "you've got a very sick boy." there was nothing i could do except for pray. that's what i had. always believe in yourself as much as others believe in you and i believe in you. >> reporter: hugh looelt sits for hours encouraging his very sick son. >> you take it from me, we're going to fighting this together. >> reporter: above his sedated son tony, photos of the all-american ten-year-old. photos got the h1n1 virus last sunday and began fighting for his life. >> hard to similar see that i mean way. >> reporter: just outside, tony's mother lizzy eatlinbaum keeps a round-the-the clark

vigil. >> i >> i go in and talk to him but i don't want him to hear me crying. >> reporter: carolyn howard's daughter leteasha is another critically ill h1n1 patient in the intensive care unit of oklahoma city's children's hospital. >> you've got to fight through this, baby. >> reporter: heavily sedated and clinging to life for the last three weeks. >> i rub her hand like this, tell her that i love her, ready for her to come home. >> reporter: at home, this ten-year-old loves to sing and dance, but in oklahoma, one of the state's hardest hit by h1n1, leteasha got sick and never got better. this machine may be her last chance. it oxygen nates her blood, acting as her heart and lungs to give her sick body a fighting chance. >> you have to fight through this to come home. >> reporter: tony's room is on that side of the nursing station leteasha's room is right over here. they're 40 feet apart, but doctors say their chances of recovery are miles apart. >> we're going to pull through this. >> reporter: tony's improving,&

slowly, day by day. >> he's making baby steps forward, which is where we want him to be. >> reporter: bullet tisha howard's family knows she is not responding. what explains why one child would be doing well and another child would be not doing as well. >> great question, i wish we new the answer to it. this is new for us. >> reporter: leteasha has weight issues and asthma. not enough, doctors say, to explain why she's sinking as tony improves. 43 of america's 593 h1n1 deaths have been children under 18. so far, none of them in oklahoma where two families are at the cross roads of this mystery virus. >> i love you so much, son. >> reporter: mark strassmann, cbs news, oklahoma city. >> couric: so terrifying and heart breaking. and we'll be right back. mom was diagnosed with moderate alzheimer's.

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it works or your money back! >> couric: in his interview with bob schieffer today, president obama took note of the passion stirred up by the debate over health care. we've seen it at down meetings and during the protest last weekend in washington. our senior political correspondent jeff greenfield looks tonight at hue who the protestors are and what is bringing them up.

>> reporter: most of those there would have called themselves patriots. that "don't tread on me" flag was an early symbol of the american revolution who argued that their government today is betraying pra traditional principles. steve butler, a physician from indiana, was handing out copies of the constitution. >> if you read the quotes of thomas jefferson, these guys were conservatives and they said that the control should be with the people and not with the big government. >> reporter: ileana johnson came to america from romania some 30 years ago. >> i find myself now every morning when i wake up, what kind of freedom have we lost today. >> reporter: you could also find plenty of signs of something else-- a rage that identifies president obama with hitler or stalin, that questions his citizenship, that seems to celebrate the death of a famous liberal. and, among the main currents of the protestors here, a conviction that the media-- fox news and talk radio excepted-- are deliberately concealing the truth. >> yeah, they're blocking it out. i mean, we know it, everybody knows it.

>> you see these people back here? they all know there's something happening but the mainstream media, they don't tell us. >> reporter: it's a charge of bias the networks vigorously deny. but perhaps what most united these protestors was a broader discontent, a sense that they are not being heard, that their interests and the nation's interests are in the hands of a few. don newman came up from texas. >> it's all the good old boy network, you know? where they don't care what we think. they're going to... everybody's in everybody's bed, you know? and everybody's pocket. and it's who's got the most money. it's all about greed and power. >> reporter: the real question is what this populist anger may mean politically. does it help or hurt either party? that's what we're going take a good look at this sunday on sund morning, katie. >> couric: jeff, what about claims that some of the ander directed at the president is somehow fueled by racism. >> reporter: i can only tell you what i saw and painting a crowd like this with a broad brush is always a mistake.

most of these people, even the virulent obama haters, talk about his liberalism, his leftism, his socialist or even communist tendencies. i also think of f his name was colin powell and if he had come from, say, a small town with a career in the military-- in other words, a ma traditional background-- you would have seen a lot less talk about racism. disentangling race from things like culture and political ideology is always very tricky. >> couric: all right, jeff greenfield, jeff, thanks very much. and coming up next, a final finely-aged bart tender in steve hartman's "assignment america."

>> we end the week with one for the record and one for the records books. here's steve hartman with tonight's "assignment america". >> reporter: if 95-year-old angelo cammarata is any indication, the secret to long life is a whiskey and coke every morning. 77 years of second-hand smoke. 77 years. that's how long this guy has been tending bar. so you've been the oldest bartender... >> not the oldest. >> reporter: oh, why am i here then? >> the longest continuous

working bartender. >> reporter: and to be perfectly accurate he says it hasn't been 77 years, either. angelo started tending bar 76 years, five months, 11 days, 18 hours and 27 minutes ago. he remembers the fact moment because it was the end of prohibition. on the eve of april 7, 1933, customers lined up outside his father's grocery store in pittsburgh and when the clock struck 12, angelo made his first sale. at 12:01? is it safe to say it was 12:01 in the morning? >> before 12:01. 12 seconds 01. >> reporter: and from that second to this, angelo stuck to the same career path. his new bar-- and by new i mean he moved in 56 years ago-- is a neighborhood place that draws young and old alike. marlene schnore met her husband terry at cammaratas. then 20 years later their daughter michelle met her husband dan here, too. up at the bar, john black stock

sits on the same stool his dad kept warm for five decades. >> that's just the way this bar is. >> reporter: that's also why, for the regulars, the rest of this story is so sad. >> my family, my customers are my family. >> reporter: it's last call at cammaratas. angelo says his wife mary can't get around on her own anymore and a 71-year marriage trumps a 77-year-old career. >> bye, bye, bye! >> reporter: angelo's last night was last saturday. after partying to the wee hours of 8:30 p.m., the man who ushered out prohibition finally shuffled off to retirement. even at 95, angel he feels like he still has quite a few good years left. assuming, of course, the fresh air doesn't kill him. >> bye! >> reporter: if you think that guy's something, wait until my next story. next week we'll check back with a man who makes angelo look like

a spring chicken. we first met walter when he was a spry 112 years old. he's now claimed the title of world's oldest man and next year he turns is 13. that story next monday. that's right, "assignment america" is moving to monday nights. so everybody, you've got to mark your clocks and your calendars because i'll be here mondays, not friday. >> couric: finally a reason to look forward to mondays. meanwhile, angelo will have time to do a little bar hopping himself, right? >> reporter: i don't think he's going to be in a bar for a while. i think he's done. i think 77 years is enough and he'll sit at home. >> couric: steve, thanks so much. see you monday. that's the "cbs evening news" for to want. i'm katie couric in new york. thanks for watching this week, jeff glor will be here tomorrow. i'll see you on monday. have a great weekend. good night. captioning sponsored by cbs captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org

. first up tonight, a developing story out of dundalk, maryland. the water surging from a huge water main break. it finally has been shut off, but it does not seem to be receding. dundalk is in southern baltimore county an a large section of that area is under water this evening. the mass water main break happened this afternoon. we have been watching evacuations and the water was waist deep at one point on victims trying to get out. susan hunt said the police have had to send in swift water rescue boats to the scene. we have no injuries reported from the break. part of the two-lane road was washed away by the break. topper will step in with maps to give us perspective on where the water is. >> so ironic to see